Plow



E. C. GIBSON PLOW 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct 2, 194

W w W N m w l 3 m ww mm Q R. .W \N 2| N\ um. mm a Q 7 R 3 MM a M o o ovm W 2. xv Q m E m A mm Patented Sept. 22, 1953 PLOW' Eugene C. Gibson,Atlanta,, Ga.,, assignor. to;

Southern Iron .& Equipment-Company, Atlanta, Ga., a corporation ofGeorgia Application O'ctober 2, 1946; Serial No: 700,608

3 Claims. 1

This invention relates generally to agriculturalimplements and moreparticularly to tractor..-

mounted plows, commonly-referred to as integral plows, in which thetractor itself serves asthe carriage and controlsthe depth of plowing.

Theigeneral object andnatureof the invention is the provision of'animproved tractor-mounted plow having a plurality of furrow openers, suchas disc or moldboard plows, in which the implement is closely coupled tothe tractor. in order that the integral unitcan be maneuvered andhandled with ease in small fields, terraced lands,

on hillsides and in any other places where maneuverability and shortturns are required. The invention resides in the: construction andarrangement of the implement and in:the novel manner in which it isattached to the tractor and novel manner inwhich the forward thrust ofthe tractor is applied to the implement.

With the advent of the pneumatic-tired, light weight, high-speedtractor, the problem of obtaining sufiicient traction was-encountered.In

many instances, it is necessary when plowing cer-' tain types of soil toadd additional weights, either inthe form of liquidin'thepneumatic tiresor in the form of heavy metal weightsattached to the traction wheels.With integral type plows heretofore known, when. plowing some types ofsoil,

it was necessary to apply downward .force to the.

plow in. order to cause it to penetrate the soil and maintain a uniformdepth. Obviously it was .necessary that this downward force be suppliedfrom the tractor. The resulting reaction on the trac-- tor, in efiect,reduced its weight andtended to reduce the traction and increase theslippage. of

the pneumatic-tired wheels. With the novel construction and arrangementof the present invention, an improved integral plowis providedin whichthe plow is pivotally connected to the tractor in such a way that thereis sufficient downward'force by reason of the draft of the plow bodiesor furrow openers so that there is'no upward thrust on the plow with theresult that the tractor carries substantially the entire weight of theplow. The tail wheel shown in the present invention is not for'thepurpose of carrying the weight of the plow but merely for the purpose ofresisting side thrust.

A major object of theinventionis to provide an improved integral plowattached to thetractorinsuch a way that the total lengthibehindthedrawbar is reduced to a minimum to facilitate. maneuvering and turning.

Another object is to provide an improved integral plow so attached andhitched that the furrow openers ar substantially free-floating and, inthe absence of disturbingforces, such as are encountered when strikinghard objects like rocks and stumps, will be substantially in a state ofequilibrium about the transverse pivotalconnection to the tractordrawbar.

vicle an improved integral .plow so hitched to the tractor. thatv thereis substantially no upward thrust reaction on: the drawbar wherebysubstantially; the fullweight of the plow will be carried .bythe'tractor, thereby eliminating the necessity of adding weights to thetractorwheels; in order to get necessary traction.

A still further objectis to provide an integral plow provided with acoupling or hitch which producesa lineof: draft so that the tail wheelresists only side draftand carries substantially no weight of the plow.

Other and further objects will become-readily apparent from thefollowing description when considered in connection with theaccompanying drawings, illustrating an embodiment of theinvention, andin which:

Figure l is aside elevation of the rear portion of the tractorandintegral plow with the near wheel removed and showingthe manner ofattaching the integral plow in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the'structure shown in Figure l;

tor .and indicating the direction of theforces producing momentsaboutthe pivotal drawbar connection and illustrating the major novel featuresof the invention.

Inthe illustrated embodiment of the invention represented in thedrawings, an integral plow is "shown as mounted on the tractor andattached toa conventional drawbar furnished with the tractor. Aconventional tractor 5 having suitable traction wheels 6. is illustratedin the drawings as being pneumatic-tired. The wheels 6 are the. centerof the forward thrust of the tractor. The tractor is provided with asuitable drawbar mechanism ll. of known construction, particularlyadapted. for integral type plows.

Thecross-shaft mechanism H includes transverse. drawbar 12 which ispivoted aboutan axis, generally indicated by the letter A,,transverselyof the tractor'in suitable side links 53 and i l. The forward ends ofthe links I 3.and' M are pivot ally connectedto bosses lfiand l!respectively on gear housing l8. The gear housing l8 consti tutes themain frame of the tractor. It is to be noted that the links l3 and M arepivotally connected to the gear housing I 8 at points on a transverseaxis indicated by the letter B which-is parallel to the axle I. As willbecome moreapparent later; becausethe side links l3 and M are pivoted onthe transverse axis B which is below theaxle 1 and also belowthetransverse axisA' of thecross shaft l2, the forward thrust of thetractor produces a downward component of thrust on the plow which helpsit to penetrate the soil during the plowing operation.

For purposes of lifting the cross-shaft l2 and with it the integral plowunit !5, suitable hydraulic mechanism !9 is provided for operatinglifting arms 2! and 22. and 24 respectively are connected between theends of arms 2! and 22 and'the side links !3 and M, respectively. Thelifting link 23 is provided with a suitable manually operable lengthadjusting mechanism 26 for the purpose of leveling the cross-shaft !2 orsuitably adjusting it when one wheel of the tractor is running in thefurrow. The mechanism described above is conventional and forms no partof the present invention.

The integral plow unit I comprises a plurality of tool beams 3! and 32which carry furrow openers 33 and 34, respectively. The disc furrowopeners 33 and 33 are carried by suitable bearing hubs which aresuitably journaled to the respective beams at 3311 and 34a. The forwardends of the tool beams 3! and 32 are rigidly connected together by aplurality of stacked transverse steel plates 36 which are engaged bybolts extending through the plates and through the beams. These platesserve the dual purpose or" connecting the beams into an integral rigidunit and at the same time serve as a counterbalance for the weight ofthe rear furrow opener 3 and the tail wheel 38, for reason which willbecome more apparent later in the description. Instead of the steelplates, a heavy casting could be substituted, if desired. Anothertransverse plate 3"! is bolted to the tool beams 3! and 32 and also tothe crossshaft !2 and serves as the member through which the pullingthrust of the tractor is applied to the plow unit I5.

For reasons which will be explained later, the forward furrow opener ordisc 33 is so arranged on the beam 35 that its point of penetration isbelow and slightly in front of the pivotal connection of the cross-shaft!2.

The tail wheel 33 is adjustably secured to the beam 32 and its solepurpose is to resist side thrust on the plow unit and not to carry anysubstantial weight of the plow which is preferably carried by thetractor. The tail wheel 38 is suitably journaled on the end of an arm43, the forward end of which is rotatably mounted in a boxing "i4 whichin turn is carried on the end of an arm 45 bolted to the beam 32, thearm 45 being illustrated in Figure 3 and being disposed beneath andcoextensive with the upper horizontal portion of the bracket 33 in theplan View of Figure 2. The angular position of the arm 45 is fixed by alink 42 which is pivotally connected at its lower end to arm 45 and hasa plurality of holes 32a at its upper end to which it may be bolted at adesired position to a bracket 33 attached to the beam 32. A suitableleaf spring .3, having one end fixed to the arm 43 and its forward endconnected by a link 53 to a boss on the boxing, is adapted toresiliently urge the disc tail wheel 38 downwardly for the purpose ofsupplying the necessary resistance to the side draft of the plow unit55.

In order to maintain the plow unit [5 in a state of equilibrium aboutthe transverse axis A of the cross-shaft !2, a V-shaped strut 4'! isfixed to the top of the beams 3i and 32. The upper end of the strut 4'!is pivotally connected to a suitable adjustable link 55, the other endof which is attached to suitable shock absorbing mechanism 5! attachedto the tractor 5. The V strutA'! and Suitable lifting links 23 theadjustable link 55 cooperate with the side links !3 and I4 and thecross-shaft I2 to position the plow unit !5 in its raised position andserves to stabilize the plow about the transverse axis A of thecross-shaft !2 when the plow is in operation. The main purpose of the Vstrut 41, the link 55 and the shock absorbing mechanism 5! are tostabilize the plow when shocks are encountered, such as when the plowstrikes stumps or rocks, and to carry the weight of the plow in theraised position. The adjustability of the link 55 makes it possible toadjust the relative position of the furrow openers 33 and 34 about thepivotal axis A of the cross-shaft I2 to give various angles of pitch tothe plow. The angle of pitch and the counterbalance weight gives theplow the necessary penetration. Due to the suction of the furrow openers33 and 34, there is a downward thrust on the plow over and above thatrequired for penetration of the plow and therefore it is necessary tocarry this excess downward thrust by the tractor.

The novel features and advantages of the invention will be readilyapparent from reference to Figure 4, where the same reference charactersused in the other figures are used to indicate similar parts representedon the line diagram, and indicating the direction of forces acting onthe plow unit !5 which tend to hold it in a substantial state ofequilibrium about the axis A of the pivotally connected cross-shaft i2.It is desired to emphasize here that the arrows indicating the directionof the vector forces are not to scale, but are used merely forillustrative purposes. As previously pointed out, since the links !3 andH! are pivotally connected on the axis B to the main frame !8 of thetractor 5 below and in front of the driving axle 'l', the forward thrustof the tractor produces a downward component of thrust, indicatedgenerally by the arrow C, on the furrow openers 33 and 34. Other forceswhich cause penetration of the plows are the suction of the plows andthe weight W of the plurality of plates 36 or any casting which might besubstituted therefor. It is to be noted that the pivotal connection,indicated by the axis A, of the plow unit E5 to the links !3 and I4, isabove and just to the rear of the point of penetration of theforwardmost furrow opener 33. The suction of the discs 33 and 34 createsa moment in a counterclockwise direction about the axis A. In addition,since the forward thrust of the tractor is applied through the axis Bwhich is below axis A, there is a downward thrust through axis A whichis slightly in excess of that required to keep the plow in the ground.

Any resultant moment tending to rotate the plow unit I5 about the axisA, resulting from the operation of the discs 33 and 34, is resisted by aforce, indicated by the arrow D, supplied by the strut 4'! and theadjustable link 55. The excess downward thrust on the plow unit [5through the axis A and about the axis B is taken by the hydraulicmechanism !9 through the links 2!, 22 which are pivoted to the sidelinks I3 and M, respectively, which controls the depth of plowing. Thisexcess downward thrust is therefore carried by the tractor. This is avery important feature because it, in effect, increases the weight ofthe tractor and reduces the slippage between the pneumatic-tired wheelsand the ground. The tail wheel 38 does not carry any substantial weightof the plow, but is so adjusted that it bears sufficiently against thebottom of the furrow to resist any resultant side thrust of the plow I5.

Although the embodiment of the invention discloses a plow unit havingonly two furrow openers, because it is primarily concerned with anintegral plow particularly adaptable for high maneuverability and shortturning, it will be apparent that the principles of the invention couldbe applied to a plow unit having three or more furrow openers. The termcenter of suction thrust is used in reference to a point through whichthe downward thrust of the disc or plow may be considered to beconcentrated.

Although the invention has been described in considerable detail, itwill be apparent to those skilled in the art that many variations arepossible without departing from the inventive concept. It is thereforedesired that the invention not be limited except insofar as is madenecessary by the prior art and by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A plow comprising, a frame including a plurality of individual beamshaving longitudinal horizontal portions and depending portions, saidhorizontal portions being substantially parallel and in a common plane,a transverse weight member extending between said parallel portions andrigidly fixed thereto for the purpose of rigidly fixing said beams withrespect to each other, a second transverse member extending between saidparallel portions and rigidly fixed thereto, said second transversemember having means to which said plow may be pivotally connected to atractor, the depending portions of said beams extending downwardly andtoward the free ends of said horizontal portions, a disc type furrowopener mounted for rotation on the lower ends of each of said dependingportions, and means including a lever arm extending from said rigidframe above said first pivotal means to which a pivotal means may beconnected to a tractor for resistin pivotal movement about said firstpivotal means.

2. An integral plow unit adapted to be carried by a tractor infree-floating relation therewith comprising, a frame including aplurality of individual beams having horizontal longitudinal portionsand depending portions, said horizontal portions being substantiallyparallel and in a common horizontal plane, a transverse member extendingbetween said longitudinal portions and rigidly fixed thereto, saidtransverse member having pivotal coupling means to which said plow maybe pivotally connected to a tractor, a transverse counterweighting bodyextending between said longitudinal portions and rigidly fixed thereto,the depending portions of said beams extending downwardly and toward thefree ends of said horizontal portions, a disc type furrow opener mountedfor rotation on each end of said depending portions, one of said disctype furrow openers having its point of thrust forwardly of said pivotalcoupling means and the remainder of said disc type furrow openers beingdisposed oppositely relative to said pivotal coupling means, saidcounterweighting body being disposed at the free ends of saidlongitudinal portions to balance said furrow openers in substantialequilibrium about said pivotal means and in free floating state, a draftconnection between said plow and said tractor comprising laterallyspaced elements having universal pivotal connection with said tractorand with said pivotal coupling means on said frame, a lever arm rigidlysecured to and extending upwardly from said frame above the pivotalconnection to said plow and a linkage connected between said lever armand said tractor for resisting pivotal movement about said first pivotalmeans.

3. An integral plow unit adapted to be carried by a tractor infree-floating relation therewith comprising, a frame including aplurality of individual beams having horizontal longitudinal portionsand depending portions, said depending portions of said beams extendingdownwardly and toward the free ends of said horizontal portions, a disctype furrow opener mounted for rotation on the ends of each of saiddepending portions, said horizontal portions being substantiallyparallel and in a common horizontal plane, a first transverse memberextending between said parallel portions and rigidly fixed theretohaving pivotal coupling means thereon, a transverse counterweightingbody extending between said parallel portion and rigidly fixed thereto,said counterweighting body being disposed at the free ends of saidhorizontal portions to balance said furrow openers in substantialequilibrium about said pivotal coupling means and in a free-floatingstate, one of said furrow openers having its point of thrust forwardlyof said pivotal coupling means and the remainder of said furrow openersbeing disposed rearwardly of said pivotal coupling means, a draftconnection between said plow and said tractor comprising a primarylinkage and a secondary linkage in superposed relation, said primarylinkage comprising two horizontally spaced connecting elements pivotallyconnected to the coupling means of said first transverse member and tothe tractor, and said secondary linkage comprising connecting meansattached to the tractor and the plow and spaced from the plane of theelements of said primary linkage, each of said connecting meansproviding a degree of universal movement, and the axis of the secondarylinkage being substantially parallel to the plane of the elements ofsaid primary linkage whereby a trapezoidal linkage mechanism is providedso that the plane of the horizontal portions of said plow remainsubstantially horizontal for all operative relative positions betweensaid tractor and said plow.

EUGENE C. GIBSON.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 200,955 Ward Mar. 5, 1878 246,363 Ball Aug. 30, 1881 1,501,651Ferguson July 15, 1924 2,195,515 Ferguson Apr. 2., 1940 2,195,516Ferguson Apr. 2, 1940 2,309,750 Carrington Feb. 2, 1943 2,320,141 KottMay 25, 1943 2,339,225 Strandlund Jan. 11, 1944 2,351,473 Benjamin June13, 1944 2,394,210 Sherman Feb. 5, 1946 2,440,550 Martin Apr. 27, 1948OTHER REFERENCES Flexible Farming, copyrighted 1945 by Harry Ferguson,Inc., p. 15. Copy in Div. 1, 97 -Ferguson Manuals.

Plow Book, copyrighted 1941 by Ferguson- Sherman Mfg. C0rp., p. 2. Copyin Div. 1, 97- Ferguson Manuals.

